‘Gib nicht auf!’ book launch in Hamburg, Germany – Nov 12, 2026
We welcome you to join the German book launch for Gib nicht auf! Wie eine Junge Ezidin den Völkermord überlebt (Don’t Give Up! How a young Yezidi survived the genocide) at the Fux eG arts cooperative in Hamburg, Germany on Thursday, November 12, 2026.
This graphic novel is a collaboration between artist Birgit Weyhe and Yezidi survivor Jilan (pseudonym) who survived the 2014 genocide against the Yezidi in Sinjar, northern Iraq, where she was captured and sold into slavery. The book was produced by our Iraq/Syria Research Cluster
The graphic novel is the first time Jilan shares her story publicly: about the fear of death during her captivity, her life as a slave, her eventual escape, coping with her trauma, and the first steps toward a new, self-determined life in Germany.
The event will feature a reading by graphic artist Birgit Weyhe and a panel discussion with Birgit, Kamal Murad (Ezidi Youth Union) and Christiane Hess (Hamburg Foundation for Memorials and Learning Sites in Memory of the Victims of Nazi Crimes).
Following the panel discussion, there will also be music by Nesibe and a catered a reception.
Registration is not required.
Please contact Dr. Leyla Ferman (leyla.ferman@gmail.com) if you have any questions about the event.
Event Details: Book Launch of ‘Gib Nicht Auf!‘
Date: November 12, 2026
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm (doors open at 6:30 pm)
Location: fux eG, Zeiseweg 9, 22765 Hamburg
Panelists
Birgit Weyhe is a comic book artist. She was born in 1969 in Munich and achieved a Master’s Degree in German Literature and History, as well as a Diploma in illustration. Weyhe‘s Graphic Novels have been nominated for various prizes in Germany, France and Japan. Her books focus on research-based historical and political themes. In 2022 she was honoured the ‘Best German-language Comics Artist’ at the International Comic-Salon in Erlangen. She was also the first comic artist ever to receive the prestigious ‘Hamburg Lessing Grant’. Her Graphic Novel “Rude Girl” was shortlisted in 2022 for the Hamburg Literature Prize as Book of the Year and in 2023 the first comic ever to be nominated for the Leipzig Book Fair Prize. Her Comic “Schweigen“ is nominated for the German Youth Literature Prize. She lives and works in Hamburg. Her books have been reviewed in all major German print media (e.g., Die Zeit, SZ, FAZ, Tagesspiegel, taz, FR).
Dr. Leyla Ferman is a political scientist and researcher with extensive experience in project leadership, research, and international collaboration. She holds a PhD in Political Science from Leibniz University Hannover, where she studied decentralization and ethnic conflicts in Turkey. Her professional work spans academia, public institutions, research organizations, and civil society. She currently works at Qualiservice, SOCIUM – Research Center on Inequality and Social Policy at the University of Bremen, focusing on research data management, project support, and the curation of anonymized data collections. Previously, she led a documentation and education project at the Lower Saxony Memorials Foundation. Her research and publications focus on genocide, memory, minorities, democracy, and participation.
Kamal Murad is part of the Ezidi Youth Union / Youth of Germany (Ezidische Jugend Deutschland e. V. (EJD), a registered, non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the young Ezidi (Yezidi) diaspora community in Germany. As Germany is home to the largest Ezidi diaspora in the world, the EJD provides a vital network for young people navigating life between traditional culture and modern German society. The association also operates a central platform alongside regional branches—such as the Ezidische Jugend Deutschland Nordrhein-Westfalen e. V. (the country’s first state-level association for Ezidi youth, founded in 2018).
Dr. Christiane Hess is a German historian, author and educator who currently works at the Foundation of Hamburg Memorials and Learning Centres commemorating the Victims of Nazi Crimes. In this role, she is responsible for historical and political education, as well as the public programme, particularly for the Fuhlsbüttel and Stadthaus memorial sites. One of her main areas of research is the visual and material culture of the Nazi camps and the Holocaust.
Kjell Anderson is a jurist and social scientist specialised in the study of mass atrocities and human rights. He is the author of Perpetrating Genocide: A Criminological Account (Routledge 2019) and the co-editor (with Erin Jessee) of Researching Perpetrators of Genocide (University of Wisconsin Press, 2020). His book – The Dilemma of Dominic Ongwen (Rutgers University Press, forthcoming) draws from extensive qualitative interviews to examine the life of Dominic Ongwen. Ongwen is a former child soldier in the Lord’s Resistance Army (Uganda), who was recently convicted by the International Criminal Court of crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Still featuring pages of Gib nicht auf! from the short documentary I Just Keep Going (2026) by filmmaker Olaf Markmann.
Work on the graphic novel began in November 2024, when Jilan met graphic novelist Birgit Weyhe in Germany—an encounter facilitated by researcher and community liaison Dr. Leyla Ferman. The work has unfolded through intimate conversations, evolving sketches, and dialogue in collaboration with research cluster co-lead, Dr. Kjell Anderson.
Congratulations to Birgit and Jilan on co-creating this incredible graphic novel and to our Iraq/Syria Research Cluster.
Gib nicht auf! is now available in German by publisher Avant-Verlag. Learn more about Gib nicht auf! here.
Many thanks to Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) for our project funding, and NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies and University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law for supporting additional pages for our graphic narrative.